Didn't See it Coming
by Bryan Greenberg
Summary: She was really just a distraction for what he really wanted. Tristan centric but not a Trory.


Disclaimer: I am not, in fact, Amy Sherman-Palladino. Nor am I making money off of this so don't sue me.

**Didn't See it Coming**

Tristan looked at Rory Gilmore and laughed humorlessly to himself. Everyone seemed to think she was the girl that he has finally fallen for. The thought was ridiculous to him. Sure he wanted to nail her. He wanted to add a Magdalene to her Mary, especially after she resisted him so adamantly. She was a mildly amusing distraction from the fact that he couldn't get what he really wanted.

Madeline. To Tristan, she was perfect. She was adorable and sweet, and he knew that, while she was ditzy, she wasn't dumb like everyone at their stupid school seemed to assume. It wasn't that he couldn't have her. He just couldn't have her in the way he wanted. She was fickle with her emotions and time. She had a social life similar to his. The only difference was that he only used girls the way he did because of her. Even his sexual conquests had become not enough of a distraction. That was why he began pairing mindless fucks with meaningless girls and stupid pranks with those idiots Duncan and Bowman.

Tristan shook his head. He couldn't get lost in thought about her again. He needed to concentrate on his conquest of the moment. He couldn't believe how much this one was making him work. If he was honest with himself he liked it better that way. The more trouble she gave him, the better she kept his mind off of Madeline. Despite this, it didn't do wonders for his ego that he was having such a hard time tearing her away from bag boy. He didn't think it would be much longer now though. He had returned from suspension from his latest prank to a perfect opportunity. Playing Romeo to her Juliet was the perfect opportunity to exploit her irritating innocence and naiveté.

A few days later he listened in amusement as she nervously asked him to keep their little kiss at Madeline's birthday party a secret. Please, he barely remembered it. He had pretended to be upset about Summer's infidelity so he could openly mope about seeing Madeline slip off to the pool house with Louise and their boy toys of the evening. When Rory joined him he figured he might as well take advantage of her sympathy and her fortuitous post break-up vulnerability. It hadn't worked quite as planned though. He'd only gotten a kiss and a few tears. Well, it didn't matter now. He would use the play to get her, but first he had to talk to Bowman. The guy said he had a genius plan which could only mean it was so ridiculously stupid that it was sure to be a decent distraction.

He knew breaking into the safe wasn't going to be a good idea. That was why he had done it in the first place. But military school? That he hadn't expected. Now he wouldn't even get to see Madeline, let alone be with her. Well, maybe he would finally get over her at military school.

His father insisted that he go explain and apologize to his Shakespeare group so they would know who to blame if they got a bad grade on the project. He wished he would see _her_ there but instead he only got yelled at by Paris, chastising sympathy from Rory, and a death glare from bag boy. He figured he might as well keep up the charade with Rory so he told her that he wished he could kiss her, but he really wished he could kiss the girl with shorter and darker hair. He caught a glimpse of her as he was leaving and that was all.

He returned to Hartford the summer before college. Rory heard he was back from Paris, and she decided to go see him before she left for Europe with her mother. She was escorted to his room by a maid and she entered nervously.

He was surprised to see her. She looked nervous, like she wasn't sure if she should be here or not.

"Look," she said nervously, "I know you never actually liked me. I was a challenge. You wanted my virginity, my innocence. Before Jess left I never would have even considered giving it to you, of all people. You weren't going to win that game." He just looked at her, knowing she wasn't finished. "I was going to have sex with him on prom night. It was going to be perfect because I love him," she continued shakily, "But we didn't go because he just left, no goodbye. I don't want to deal with being a virgin anymore. It's too much stress."

He couldn't believe this was happening after all these years. She had always been a loose end. The conquest he never completed and it drove him mad. Apparently he was going to get to take advantage of her vulnerability after all. It was kind of poetic. They would use each other for their own means.

"I assume you're good at it?" she said questioningly. He nodded and displayed his trademark smirk. "Okay," she said quietly as she moved toward him and removed her shirt.

She lost her virginity that night. It hurt, and she went home crying. She didn't like to think about that night, but a year later she was glad it had happened. It made her mother's disappointment more bearable because, while she may be the only one who knew it, she hadn't actually lost her virginity to a married man.

Seven years later she was surprised by a piece of mail. "You are cordially invited to the wedding of Madeline Lynn and Tristan Dugrey," it said. She hadn't seen that one coming, but she was happy for them. She grinned as she heard Logan, her own husband, coming home from on of his trips.

Review pretty please.


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